Saturday, December 03, 2011

(above) CC's Alexander Krushelnyski, top right, scores in the first period of CC's 4-3 win over DU

The University of Denver thought they had done enough to salvage a tie in Colorado Springs on Friday night, but a penalty shot awarded with almost a minute left in OT sealed their fate. Colorado College walked away with a 4-3 victory.

DU trailed by a goal on three separate occasions and fought back to tie the score on two goals by Jason Zucker and one by Beau Bennett with less than five minutes remaining in regulation.

Awesome game to watch and both teams played well. Someone needs to bitch about that call on Bennett near the end of the 3rd that wiped out our power play chance so it may as well be me....Ridiculous! But then again, 2 of those WCHA officials have reffed my beer league games so what should we really expect?

Terrible call in OT. Kid made a great move for the penalty shot, but the call was questionable to say the least. Was it a penalty? Yes. 2 mins for tripping but not a penalty shot. Brutal way to end a great game.

I think it was definitely a penalty, but not necessarily a shot. He was already in so deep he didn't really have the room to make a move. The shot was really a great move though. And Howe made some great saves in the last minute and a half of regulation to keep the game going.

The call on Beau was questionable, he was already turned to the side, and may well have tripped on the refs skate. I think it's funny that whenever Mousseaux calls a penalty, it's always tripping.

But DU did have the lead and didn't capitalize on periods of momentum. Gotta close out opportunities like that on the road against your archrival. DU lost as much as CC won. This and Miami- two of the best games all year, besides the BC game, and both were tough losses.

Also, CC fans have to be the dumbest in college hockey. Loudly spouting absurd ignorance. At least fans of the green scum understand hockey as they obnoxiously carry on. To clear things up: leading with your elbow into a player's face is not a "clean check," and if a CC player falls down, it's not an automatic DU penalty.

Great game by both teams, substandard reffing in key moments of the game. Zucker was awesome, and I hope his arm is ok. Gwoz needs to make a tape of all the cheap shots against Zucker this year and take it to the league. This is getting ridiculous to have a star player on the verge of season ending injuries every weekend. Bennett played well, as always, but I would have liked to see him elevate his game a bit, like Zucker did. Tough loss, but I think its good to get some of these tough losses now, and learn as we go. At least we are not "1957".

LOL easy schedule??? There are NO easy games. Disappointing the way the game was officiated, from the moment DU got away with too many men on the ice early after the game started; considering those are regular Referees and Linesman for both CC and DU. It's not like they were newbies, or MN guys who had never traveled to Colorado before. All 4 Refs know both teams very well. I don't know if any goalie would have stopped that penalty shot though....

Great game.I can't remember a time, ever, I've seen a penalty shot called in a college game.....and I don't think I've ever seen one called in OT where it determines the outcome. From where I sat, it looked like a good call.The officiating was inconsistent. At times it looked like they were putting away their whistles....then a silly penalty called on a minor infraction.DU played well, but could convert on the power play as they should have.Great atmosphere and crowd at the World Arena.Looking forward to the next set of games with CC.

Despite the loss, that was a GREAT game. Both goaltenders played out of their minds and came up big. And there were great scoring chances on both ends of the ice. But most of all, DU showed a lot of heart and determination. I'm looking forward to the games in February.

DU hockey 2011-2012........tons of top-level talent, loaded with upperclassman.....severely under-performing. Biggest disappointment in college hockey so far this season. Looking like you will be the St.Cloud State of last season.

It was a great college hockey game, period. This game, I think, has elevated the DU/CC rivalry and shown the rest of the country (via national TV) this rivalry at it's most exciting.

Both teams out there giving everything they had - up and-down hockey where goal chances kept everyone on the edge of their seats. The game had everything - great goals, big hits, great saves, good crowd.

The only ones who didn't bring their "A" games were the refs, who made some bad calls on both sides, as they often do in this league.

As a DU fan, I love the effort level I am seeing from DU. Even though the team has lost the last two in a row, they are playing very hard and if they continue to play that way, the wins will come. Both games were a bounce or two from DU wins.

Couple of observations: JZ played like a man possessed. He was putting the puck on net all night long and skating like the wind. That may be the best game I've ever seen any DU forward play, ever. The CC power play is lethal, even without Schwartz. Where would we be without Jussi?

That was a tough one to lose. I, too, can't recall an OT loss on a penalty shot. Props to CC, they're a very good club, even without their top scorer. If DU can play with that intensity and committment, we'll be fine.

Great game all around, seriously. The penalty shot was a little sketchy...denied a goalscoring opportunity, yes, but it wasn't like the DU defenseman had no play on the puck.

Generally in an OT period, you won't see many, if any, penalties. Strange to see a penalty SHOT given in that situation.

Either way, an absolutely classic game. Zucker was playing out of his mind the whole night and Drew Shore showed some serious skills. Juho was alright -- could've done a little more on two of the goals, looked like he was screened though. Gotta give him a hand though, he did make some great saves and made himself big...as a freshman, going into a very tough arena to play in.

I kinda find myself thinking if this would've gone any different if Murray or Brittain were healthy, and I can't see how it would've.

The moral of the story here as that, even if the ending was a bit questionable, this was one of the purest hockey games you'll ever see; knock down, drag out affair.

That should be in the rule book, Man. No OT game should end with a penalty shot. Sit 2 guys in the penalty box to make the man advantage lopsided or something; maybe make it like a shootout "best of" format... but give the offending team a chance. Unfortunately that moment comes down to the goalie and the shooter. 2 people control the outcome for both teams. I don't like it. Now sure - if Jussi woulda stoned him... I guess I'd like it :)

CC was without its leading scorer, Rylan Schwartz, and DU was playing it's third string freshman goaltender in Juho Olkinoura, so I guess you could call it even.

While fun to watch, this game has rejuvenated the DU CC rivalry, which had stagnated a bit in recent years as DU's rivalry with North Dakota has intensified.

However, the bottom line is this - DU needs to start winning these games. Hard work is important, but without execution, it's wasted. DU should have scored about 6 goals last night, given the golden grade A chances they created. DU needs to start piling up more victories...